They can. Republicans can use their Congressional power to end the export ban on crude oil.

History

The modern crude export ban begin under the Ford administration in reaction to energy shortages caused by price control mechanisms. Domestic oil producers, eager to break even on their investments, preferred foreign, free markets to domestic, controlled markets. The Energy Policy and Conservation Act provided that the President may “restrict exports of coal, petroleum products, natural gas, or petrochemical feedstocks, and supplies of materials or equipment which he determines to be necessary to maintain or further exploration, production, refining, or transportation of energy supplies, or for the construction or maintenance of energy facilities within the United States.” The President may grant an exception to this general. This includes exports to our free trade partners, like Mexico and Canada. In practice, oil extraction companies lobby the President and the Department of Commerce for these exportation licenses.

Strengthen Our Economy

The export ban initially helped reduce gasoline shortages in the United States caused by price control mechanisms. After the imbargo and price control mechanisms ended, America did not produce enough oil to meet its demands, so local prices (WTI) and global oil prices (Brent) closely mirrored each other. Domestic and International oil prices correlated directly with domestic gasoline prices.

In the wake of the American oil boom, the domestic and global crude oil prices began to diverge. Domestic oil prices dropped considerably while global oil prices remained unchanged. Nevertheless, American consumers did not see any direct benefits from this change. Gasoline prices remained linked to the global price of gasoline, despite the lower domestic crude oil prices. Why? While there is a surplus of crude oil, there is a lack of means of transporting that oil and a few refineries able to process it. Modern American oil is sweet, light oil. American oil refinery sector is designed for sour, heavy oil. It takes time to covert old refineries or build new refineries to process the new oil. The need for the Keystone XXL pipeline and other projects is well documented.

About The Author

David Greenberg (@txgsu43) received his Juris Doctor at Mercer University in Macon, Georgia and his B.A. in Political Science and Philosophy at Georgia Southern University. He currently services as an Associate Editor for The College Conservative. He has worked for The Heritage Foundation, The Institute for Energy Research, and Judicial Watch. He was a 2015 Charles Koch Fellow. All articles express his own opinion and should not be viewed as legal counsel or advice or the advice of organization he has affiliated with, will affiliate with, or currently affiliated with.